Are you screwed as you get older and are working in IT?

[MillCreek]

http://www.businessinsider.com/stressful-lives-of-older-tech-workers-2015-11?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+businessinsider+%28Business+Insider%29&utm_content=FeedBurner+user+view

Interesting article.  I have not encountered this sort of problem in healthcare administration.

[Marnoot]

I'm a 35 year-old software engineer. I enjoy coding well enough, but I neither wish to be a code monkey when I'm 50/55/60, nor do I think I'd have much luck landing a job doing same the older I get for many of the reasons the article discusses. My current plan is to more into engineering management, dealing with the processes and such rather than the actual code. Though "ageism" is probably pretty likely in there, too . . .

[HeroHog]

As a over 50 Sr Programmer/Analyst I can tell ya that yes, age gets to be a big issue once ya pass 40! Ya become the "old guy" in the office, ya hit that invisible wall that halts advancement. God help ya if ya have to find a new job! While experience is respected, everyone is afraid that you are "too set in your ways" and not "open to new ideas."

"Golden years" my butt!

[lee n. field]

I'm 60.  I've been in the field longer than at least one of my cow-orkers has been alive.  If this job ever goes away, it's probably Walmart greeter time.

[HeroHog]

That's sad as hell ain't it Lee?

[bedlamite]

http://www.popularmechanics.com/space/a17991/voyager-1-voyager-2-retiring-engineer/

[lee n. field]

That's sad as hell ain't it Lee?

Yep.

[Boomhauer]

Damn that sucks. I've seen it mentioned before around these parts.

I'm glad my field doesn't rush to throw away valuable experience and skills just because the employee is older...

[Scout26]

http://www.popularmechanics.com/space/a17991/voyager-1-voyager-2-retiring-engineer/

I still have my FORTRAN and Assembler books from college down in the basement.

[French G.]

Ok, so if I was 40 and looking to pick a new career is there a good place in tech for a guy who has shown maybe even slightly above average intelligence a time or two?(Yeah, I watch too much Madagascar with the kid)

I prefer to work with my hands like I do now but my back may not always agree.

[41magsnub]

Ok, so if I was 40 and looking to pick a new career is there a good place in tech for a guy who has shown maybe even slightly above average intelligence a time or two?(Yeah, I watch too much Madagascar with the kid)

I prefer to work with my hands like I do now but my back may not always agree.

One thought is to find a nice smaller school district that needs a tech coordinator.

[HeroHog]

Working for the state like at a University is good. There ya have to kill someone, in front of multiple witnesses, to lose yer job and yer biggest issue is guilt for getting paid for being being bored outta yer skull most of the time interspersed with dealing with massive stupidity from the "educational elite" the rest of the time.

[MikeB]

I worry a bit about this. Especially since I don't have a degree. I've been in IT since I was 17 in 1989. I actually dropped out of college to work since back then what they were teaching in college wasn't really relavent to where the industry was going. At that time everything was mostly self taught.

I'm currently doing some consulting for a startup that I plan to move to in the next year when they need me full time. When I do I'll be in charge of IT and should be safe there until I retire in 20 years or so assuming all goes well.

[HeroHog]

I did the same. College Sr with 90 credit hrs and a metric butt ton of experience. Smart employers overlook the degree for the experience. If they don't, ya don't want to work there, trust me.

[roo_ster]

I have done some great things with older discarded engineers.  Sometimes much older than i.  And i do it with less budget than anyone in the industry.  It has been my experience that reputed crotchetyness and poor productivity dissolves when you treat them like competent men.  They were not a management issue.  Management was the issue.

[HeroHog]

It has been my experience that reputed crotchetyness and poor productivity dissolves when you treat them like competent men.  They were not a management issue.  Management was the issue.

SO much truth there!